I hope to get out to Portland to visit my son sometime soon. It may be a while though.  He doesn't want his mother and father visiting until he gets a job and a place of his own.
 
I can understand that since he's currently living with about 10 different people with not much more than a guitar and a duffle-bag in to which he stuffed as much of his clothing as he could.  
 
I'll keep you posted.
 
Though I am thinking of starting a new thread to ask the question How many people sold their 1st Alembic and now regret it? On the other hand, four basses at home isn't sitting that well with the Mrs. since I am only really playing the medium scale Signature Deluxe I had built and the sweet short scale signature standard with a SC body that I recently purchased from Tim Bucher's estate.

Please post some photos of your new axes!!

Photos were recently posted in the showcase section of the 3/4 size Signature Deluxe I had built.  As you can see from the photos I ain't no photographer so I've sort of been waiting for a nice day to get the short scale SC outside for some better photos. Unfortunately we got 6.5 inches of new snow last night in my part of Minnesota so it might be a few days before I can do that.

Brian,  
           When the time comes if you still have the have the Distillate and with you on your West Coast visit,  we could meet and I could check out the Bass and perhaps make a transaction.  
 
 Wolf

Wolf:
 
Will do.

When you get to Portland, look me up. I have a couple of old Alembic axes hanging around. We can have a mini gathering!

silly question but what is an EB3?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gibson_EB-3

It's a old but classic design Gibson bass, typically of the short-scale variety, probably made most famous through its use by Jack Bruce. A highly modified long scale (I think) version was used by Phil Lesh both prior to his getting his Guild Starfire modified by Alembic and after the Gibson was stolen (or lost). From what I recall the instrument had modified hardware, preamps, and Guild single coil pickups installed by Alembic as well as a crazy paint job.

Nick:
 
Thanks for the offer. I'll do that.  Of course it may be a while since my son wants the visit to be contingent on his first getting a job and then a place with a friend of his in which he is not a squatter.

Here's a old photo of Phil with his modified EB-3

Phil's was originally an EB-0 (1 p/pup), and it was short scale.  The Bi-Sonic p/ups probably came off a Guild, but they were made by Hagstrom.  The paint job was by Bob Thomas, who also designed the Alembic logo & did the cover for Live/Dead.
 
Peter

I always thought that was an SG Bass

It's only been recently with the reissues (IMHO crap) that Gibson has been referring to them as SG basses.  The EB-0 had a single pick-up the EB-3 both a neck and bridge pup. The original EB-3 pups had a very distinctive muddy sound that I don't think had the clarity that Phil desired. Listen to some of Jack Bruce's live work with Cream and you'll see, or more accurately put, hear, what I mean.  When driven hard I've read that Bruce referred to the sound as sonic farting.

It was my understanding (mostly from what I've read in books on the GD's instruments and I don't know how accurate any of it is) that Phil initially played an EB-0, then moved to a Fender, then version 1 of the Guild Starfire, after which he switched to the heavily modified Gibson EB3. Eventually, he lost or had the EB-3 stolen and subsequently played the Godfather.
 
But then again, I'm not a GD historian like some of the people out there so, I could be wrong as to some or all of these accounts.